Thank you very much for inviting my federation here.
I'll give my presentation in French, but I'll answer in whatever language you want, in either one of the two.
Founded in 1975, the Fédération des producteurs de cultures commerciales du Québec is made up of 14 regional associations that can be found anywhere in Quebec that grain is grown. The federation has more than 11,000 members. The grain sector generates about $1.1 billion in farm income.
Let me give you a summary of grain production in Quebec.
In Quebec, almost a million hectares is devoted to grain production. For 2014, the area under cultivation is estimated at 910,000 hectares. The two main crops are corn and soybeans, with 39% and 38% of the total acreage respectively. The diagram in my presentation shows the relative extent of the principle grain crops in Quebec. Corn and soybean production is greater in the south and centre of the province. Other crops are more prevalent in regions to the north and the east.
Genetically modified crops take up about 300,000 hectares for corn, from a total of 355,000 hectares and 200,000 hectares for soybeans, from a total of 345,000 hectares. Almost 57% of the area under cultivation uses biotechnology, with the remainder using conventional production methods. For the first production method, the applicable legislation is the Patents Act, while for the second production method, the applicable legislation is the Plant Breeders' Rights Act, the PBRA. I will give you more details about that later.
I am now going to talk about our understanding of Bill C-18, and grain research.
Although Bill C-18 proposes changes to several laws related to the agricultural sector, the federation is particularly concerned with the proposed changes to the PBRA. The federation supports those changes, which would make the PBRA consistent with the 1991 convention of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV), which governs breeders' rights and protects the intellectual property resulting from research into the development of new crop varieties. This harmonization is necessary in an environment where research collaboration is increasingly global and no longer restricted by geographical borders.
Our position is also evident in our commitment to Partners in Innovation, which brings together 20 groups and represents most of the agricultural producers in Canada. Moreover, all partners welcome the update to the regulatory environment to bring Canadian laws into compliance with UPOV 1991.
The federation believes that protecting intellectual property can only encourage investment in research by various stakeholders in the grain industry, which will offset the reduction in public efforts in scientific agricultural research. It is also an incentive for researchers from different UPOV countries to make their research findings available to Canada, thereby promoting the diversity of genetic resources and the availability of varieties for Canadian and Quebec grain growers. With a diverse range of genetic resources, the industry can be more responsive to market needs and maintain farm competitiveness.
I would like to share a few figures that show the need for another law so that suppliers, that is to say those who produce the seed, are better protected. In 92% of cases, certified seed is used for canola crops. Of course, it is a hybrid and producers have to use it. The fact remains that in Canada the percentage of investment is 74% in the case of canola. For small-grain crops, barley and wheat among others, the percentage of producers who use certified seed is 18%. In total, private investment in small-grain production totals 2% in Canada. We can see that these crops need better protection if we want to see more investment.
I am now going to talk about genetic research in Quebec. Quebec has several public and private institutions that specialize in plant breeding research. These institutions work in the area of genetic selection and are the first to be affected by the section of Bill C-18 amending the PBRA.
These companies are relatively small compared to multinationals that produce and distribute grain seed. As mentioned previously, companies that target niche markets that do not use genetically modified crops are essential to ensure a seed supply to more northern parts of the province that are focused primarily on grain production.
These crops are less attractive to multinationals specializing in seed production because of the low return on investment and small market share compared to GM crops. This supports the arguments for such a research model in order to meet producers' needs for all grain crops. Better protection of plant breeders' rights is therefore essential to ensure the presence of small companies in the market.
In Quebec, our crop insurance forces us to use certified seed.
I will now discuss the federation's involvement in the grain network and the link with everything involving the PBRA.
In Quebec, cash crop producers contribute to grain research through levies on grain sales. A research fund, managed by the federation, was created to co-fund the CEROM, Centre de recherche sur les grains, a grain research centre. The federation also funds the Canadian Field Crop Research Alliance.
Since I have to pick up the pace, I am becoming nervous.